Fall of Saigon, 50 years on: A tale of war, loss and renewal
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It's been 50 years since the fall of Saigon, a day that marked the end of a long and brutal chapter in Vietnam’s history. In the years that followed, Ho Chi Minh City rose from the ashes of war, reinventing itself as a bustling metropolis. Yet, beneath the modern skyline and the hum of economic growth, the memories of April 30, 1975, continue to echo. William de Tamaris takes us back to that pivotal moment and explores how a city shaped by conflict now faces the future, while still carrying the weight of its past.
The fall of Saigon has become a symbol of the failure of the colonial wars of the 20th century, but also of the defeat suffered by the American army. For the city itself, which had been prosperous, it was the beginning of a long decline. Hundreds of thousands of people, fearing reprisals, desperately tried to leave. They were the first boat people, followed by millions. It’s estimated that 30 thousand South Vietnamese were executed by Northern forces after the fall of Saigon.
The Communist Party nationalised industrial and agricultural production, censored any ideology contrary to Marxism-Leninism, and banned all private enterprise. As a result, Saigon became stagnant for over twenty years. But then in 1986, Vietnam reintroduced market economy – and eight years later the United States lifted its trade embargo.
In just a few years, Ho Chi Minh City once again became the country’s economic powerhouse. A capitalist metropolis in communist territory. But for those who lived through the dark years of the civil war, it is impossible to forget the fall of Saigon.